Texas finished its spring workouts with an hour-long scrimmage Saturday at Royal-Memorial Stadium. The team will take off a month, then begin voluntary workouts.

The scrimmage had a decided defensive flavor, with quarterbacks Colt McCoy and John Chiles not looking sharp in the passing game. Colt McCoy was four of nine for 20 yards, while Chiles was one of six for 22.

Some highlights:

Texas opened in a nickel to better match the offense’s three-receiver sets. In this package, the Longhorns used three freshmen in the secondary — Earl Thomas, Christian Scott and Blake Gideon. Thomas and Scott redshirted last fall, while Gideon is an early enrollee for the spring. Ben Wells, who is expected to compete for a starting spot, was kept out of the scrimmage because he was suffering symptoms of a mild concussion.

The starting linebackers were Rashad Bobino and Rod Muckelroy. Jared Norton, who will challenge Bobino for a starting spot at middle linebacker, was sidelined with a thumb injury and did not play. Strongside linebacker Sergio Kindle, another starting candidate, missed all of spring because of a knee injury he suffered in the Holiday Bowl.

Muckelroy and Thomas, each with six, led all tacklers. Sam Acho, a second-team end, also had a nice scrimmage with three tackles, including one for a loss when he sniffed out a reverse.

Defensive coordinator Will Muschamp said the players who excelled the most this spring were three seniors — Bobino, defensive end Brian Orakpo and tackle Roy Miller.

Sophomore James Kirkendoll was the third receiver when the Longhorns opened in a three wides. Chris Hall, the do-it-all lineman, started at center.

The Longhorns played host to dozens of recruits. The most notable non-committed juniors were high-profile prospects Jamarkus McFarland, a defensive tackle, and Devon Kennard, a defensive end. The recruiting service Rivals.com lists each among the top 10 prospects in the country.

The announced crowd for the scrimmage was 43,000. The estimate appeared to be very generous.

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